A woman accused of grooming teenage girls for the sexual pleasure of the head of La Luz del Mundo church has come forward and is now alleging through her attorney that she too was a victim.
Alondra Ocampo, who has reached a plea deal in the case set for trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court next month, suffered years of sexual abuse in the church as a minor, her attorney Fred Thiagarajah said.
Thiagarajah alleged in an interview that Ocampo was raped at age 8 by Samuel Joaquin Flores, a leader of La Luz del Mundo who was succeeded after his death in 2014 by his son, Naason Joaquin Garcia, the current head of the church. Both have been known by followers as “the apostle” of Jesus Christ.
Prosecutors have described Ocampo as someone who groomed girls who were later allegedly sexually assaulted by Garcia and coerced minors into pornographic photo shoots in hotel rooms in Whittier and El Monte. They’ve said the alleged victims were told that if they went against Garcia’s desires as the apostle they were going against God.
Read the full story on LATimes.com.
